


Restless Dreams

by Brumeier



Series: Bite Sized Fic 2019 [55]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Dreams and Nightmares, Friendship, Gen, Insomnia, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2019-08-20
Packaged: 2020-09-18 20:05:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20318734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier
Summary: LJ Comment Fic for 100 Words on Music prompt:Marvel Cinematic Universe, any,Hello darkness, my old friendI've come to talk with you againBecause a vision softly creepingLeft its seeds while I was sleepingAnd the vision that was planted in my brainStill remains within the sound of silence(Simon & Garfunkel)In which Bucky can't sleep, and neither can Tony.





	Restless Dreams

James was already up, so he was aware of Tony moving through the shared living spaces of Avengers Tower. It was still fully dark outside, but he didn’t need the softly glowing safety lights to guide his way as he followed Tony. Score one for enhanced Super Soldier vision.

There was no hesitation on James’ part, no question that he should check in with Tony. There was a lot about himself he still couldn’t trust, but his instincts were still pretty reliable.

Tony went down to his workroom, which wasn’t surprising. But he didn’t do anything once he got there, and that was. He just sat at his worktable, all the lights still off, and stared off into space.

James thought he’d been stealthy, but when he slipped inside the room Tony nodded.

“I know you’re there, Space Ghost.”

“Didn’t mean to intrude,” James replied softly, not wanting his voice to carry and grow any louder in the quiet space.

“You couldn’t sleep either?”

“No.”

Tony nodded again, barely glancing in James’ direction. “I can’t stop seeing it. You’d think, after all this time, it would get easier. But it doesn’t.”

James knew he was talking about the vision of death Wanda had placed in Tony’s head, before she’d come around to their side. Tony’s deepest fears brought to life.

“At least you know it’s not real,” James said. “The things in my head… I don’t know, sometimes.”

Memories, surely. At least some of them. Terrible, gut-wrenching memories that he wished he could cut right out of his head. Other things, too. Hydra programming. The feeling that he was useless except as a tool of destruction. Thin, fragile wisps of the boy he’d once been, running around Brooklyn with Steve.

“Sorry,” he said before Tony could say anything. “That sounded bad. I’m not trying to one-up you.”

He expected some sort of joke, or sarcastic reply. Instead, Tony asked if he’d like to learn some basic robotics.

“Steve said you were a big science nerd, before. I could teach you how it works. And maybe we can do something about that imperfectly crafted arm of yours.”

“I’m game,” James said, flexing the fingers of his metal hand and hearing the gears grind.

They spent the rest of that long, sleepless night – and many others that followed – working together to build a robot. Building a friendship was just an added bonus.

**Author's Note:**

> **AN:** Of course Bucky was the first person to cross my mind when I saw this prompt, but the more I thought about it, the more it also fit Tony. And so I threw these boys together and this is the ficlet that came out.


End file.
